Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar

Electrical and Electronics Laboratory

Expt. No. 3 Rectifier and Voltage Regulator Circuits

Objective: Understanding behavior of rectifier and regulator circuits used for converting ac
line voltage to dc voltage, suitable for powering electronic circuits.

Pre-Lab Work:
1) Review the material covered in class on half-wave and full-wave rectifiers, and voltage
regulator circuits using Zener diodes.
2) Sketch the expected voltage waveforms across an R = 1k resistor connected in a full-wave
diode bridge rectifier circuit, assuming a constant voltage drop model for the diodes of VD =
0.7 V, and an input source which is a 50 Hz sinusoid of amplitude Vp = 17 V (see the
cautionary note below to see how the amplitude of 17 V arises). (i) What is the peak voltage
across R? (ii) For what fraction of a cycle does a diode conduct, and (iii) what is the average
value of the voltage across R?
3) If a large capacitor C is connected across R, the voltage ripple across R decreases. Sketch the
(filtered) voltage waveform Vf across R in this case. (i) Calculate the required value of C to
keep the peak to peak ripple voltage to Vr = 2 V. (ii) What is the average voltage V+ across R
now?
4) Vf from part 3) is used as the supply voltage to a voltage regulator (constructed by a
resistor Rs and a Zener diode in series), and can be approximately written as Vf = V+ Vr/2.
Suppose the Zener diode has nominal specifications of VZ = 10 V at IZ = 25 mA, and rZ = 8
(the Philips C10 Zener diode to be used in the lab has these specs). (i) If Rs = 220 is
chosen, what is the regulator output voltage Vo without any load resistor connected (across
the Zener) with Vf at its nominal (average) value? ii) What is the value of line regulation
Vo/Vf (in mV/V)? (iii) If a load resistor RL = 1.2 k is connected to the regulator, what is
the value of Vo with Vf at its nominal value?
Caution:
The step down transformers available in the lab are 230 V to 12-0-12 V. That is, the secondary
is provided with a center tap, which enables use of 12 V rms stepped down voltage from the
12-0 terminals. For safety, do not use the 12-12 V terminals as the working voltages obtained will
be somewhat high. (the 12 V rms voltage of the sinusoid yields a peak amplitude of
122 17 V).

Lab Work
1
Use the 1N4007 diodes available in the lab to wire up a full-wave bridge rectifier, using a
resistance R = 1 k. Observe the input and output waveforms across R and compare observed
values with theoretical values calculated in part 2) of pre-lab work.
2
Compare theoretical values from part 3) with those observed.
3
Compare theoretical values from part 4) for the voltage regulator with observed values, and
check how much ripple is present in the regulated voltage across with Zener, with and without
RL connected. Use the Philips 10 V Zener.

Discuss how well your paper calculations match your observations in the lab, and what might
be the source of significant discrepancies (if any) between them. How can the regulator circuit
be improved?